The war of words over the future of the Gisborne-Napier railway is heating up with Labour MP Moana Mackey being accused by trucking companies of “flogging a dead horse” in her efforts to get the Govt to invest in the railway line so it will carry more freight. The argument may well be played out in other parts of the country as the Govt boosts investment in the roading network and scales back investment in rail.

The region’s road transport operators say the line is now being used by only one train a week to cart fertiliser from Napier Port to Matawhero. Poverty Bay-East Coast Transport Association president, Mike Treloar, says no other industry is interested in rail freight. “No one wants to send product out through Napier - we all want to go through Gisborne port and that should be encouraged. They are flogging a dead horse there really.” The timber industry has issues with the double and even treble handling which would be required getting logs to and from trains.

Potential container freight customers are not able to use the new high-format refrigerated shipping containers because of the internal dimensions of some of the tunnels on the line. There are 13 tunnels between Gisborne and Opoutama alone, and about 25 between Gisborne and Napier. The tunnels were built during the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Eastland Group CEO, Matt Todd, says coastal shipping without a subsidy can compete with road freight - especially for large quanities going to a single destination, such as another port. “However, it can’t compete with rail if rail is being heavily subsidised.” Todd believes the Gisborne to Napier railway line cannot function efficiently in its current form, and the level of capital investment and ongoing maintenance needed means it is unlikely to ever be able to function efficiently. “Without continued, ongoing taxpayer subsidies it is not viable.”

 Copyright © Media Information Ltd
NZ Transport Intelligence Briefing